Feeding prior to brumation?

[PeachFuzz]

Hi all. I've been following this page for a while but this is my first post!
I have a 2 year old beardie boy named Peach Fuzz and I can see signs of him going into brumation. We live in northeast USA and the days are starting to get short and cold. This will be his 2nd brumation.

I've seen conflicting information and am wondering -- should I stop feeding my guy when he shows signs of brumation?

Right now he is awake for 6-8 hours a day, has a little bask in the heat lamp, but is spending most time curled up in his hide or under the UV.
Thanks!

 

[IAmAMirage]

You should continue to offer him salad every day. As for bugs, I still offer them when Mirage is showing signs of brumation. I let him decide if he wants it. Let me get some more experienced forum members to help you out! @xp29 @Chris. @AHBD

 

[xp29]

You should continue to offer him salad every day. As for bugs, I still offer them when Mirage is showing signs of brumation. I let him decide if he wants it. Let me get some more experienced forum members to help you out! @xp29 @Chris. @AHBD

I agree with @IAmAMirage
Offer salad everyday. Offer bugs on your normal schedule. They know what they need and behave accordingly

 

[Chris.]

Hi there,
I know what you mean by that but I wouldn't necessarily call it conflicting information, it is more a matter of personal preference. Up to a certain point at least.

Personally here is what I did this year and since yours are both adults, you could pretty much do the same if you'd like.
In late September my girl stopped eating all by herself but was still awake for most of the day. To me that was the first sign that it is about time for them to go down. At the first of October I did the following:

- reduce daylight hours (ramping down from 14h to 0h)
- stop feeding bugs
- drop the temps significantly (mid 60s at night, mid 70s at daytime)

Just remember to give them a day or two with good heat (so they can properly digest whatever they may have eaten recently) before you turn off the lights.

Right now all my lights are off and the room is cooled down into the low 60s with a blanket over their tanks. After around 3 months I will slowly ramp temperature and lighting hours back up. I treat them both the same even though my girl is only eight months, while my boy is also around two years now. The only thing I do is check on them every two to three weeks to get a weight on them and offer some water. So far they are both doing great, no weight loss, they are alert if you wake them but not active in any way.

And no I don't offer food of any kind during that time. They would only really eat during brumation if you keep them to warm or to bright, in which case they might also snap in and out of brumation for months and it gets kind of akward because they feel the urge to sleep but really can't.

Brumation can be scary and annoying since we tend to miss them a lot and worry all the time, but it is also really important for their long time well-being and their health.

As mentioned, that is just what I do to make it as natural as possible. Hope that helps.

 

[EmberRising]

I don’t know if I should make this a different thread, but I came on here for this exact same question! In addition - I thought I had read that if they eat before brumating, they need to eliminate (poop) before going down without heat / lights or the food would rot and injure their guts. Is that true?

 

[Claudiusx]

I thought I had read that if they eat before brumating, they need to eliminate (poop) before going down without heat / lights or the food would rot and injure their guts. Is that true?

No.

-Brandon

 

[Chris.]

I don’t know if I should make this a different thread, but I came on here for this exact same question! In addition - I thought I had read that if they eat before brumating, they need to eliminate (poop) before going down without heat / lights or the food would rot and injure their guts. Is that true?

As Brandon mentioned, that is not the case. When I do my checkups, I will feel their belly however to make sure there is no strage hardness going on. Mostly because I'm paranoid though

 

[EmberRising]

Thank you, guys!! This had been totally stressing me out with worry about brumation - this is our 2nd one too. The first time I had to learn to just let him be. I’m trying to be chill this time!

 

[PeachFuzz]

Yes, thank you so much! This makes me feel better and you're right, I trust Peach Fuzz to do what he needs.